League of Volunteers of the Ekaterinburg Jewish Cultural Center "Menorah"

"Let my good deeds be so numerous as pomegranate seeds".

The volunteer project was created by the Ekaterinburg Jewish Cultural Center Menorah. We are open to all who are already engaged in volunteering and those who are just beginning their journey. "League of Volunteers" provides an opportunity to do good deeds and help people in need within and outside the Jewish community.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

"League of Volunteers" - provides an opportunity to do good deeds and help people in need within and outside the Jewish community. Everyone here can provide and receive volunteer assistance, thereby keeping the values of communication between generations and responsibility for each other.

WHAT ARE WE DOING?

We are attracting and looking for volunteers to help people with different needs. In one year of the project's work, more than 200 volunteers, aged from 14 to 90, who have been active in different directions, appeared in our team. They share their time to help everyone, from children to elderly people. Volunteers provide professional advice on various issues, organize charitable projects, events and actions to help those in need, and initiate their own projects.

HOW TO BECOME A VOLUNTEER?

It is very simple! It is enough to choose an interesting activity in our profile and send the form. Then we will contact you to clarify all the details. Thus, with the help of three simple steps it is possible to improve the life quality of the needy and make it meaningful. Due to a large number of options, you can choose activities that correspond to your interests and the amount of your free time. Your volunteer activity can take only 1 hour a week, however, we consider it as a great contribution to the promotion of our community.

You can fill out the form for participation here http://goo.gl/forms/Bph5mJoeQORYDgqS2

INTERESTING FACT

The project symbol is a pomegranate. This fruit is always linked with Jewish tradition and history. At various times the clothes of the high priest, the king's head and ancient coins were decorated with pomegranate. According to one version, the number of pomegranate seeds corresponds to the number of the Torah commandments. During the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, the pomegranate is always on the table as one of the Israeli fruits, and people say the traditional wish: "May your good deeds be so numerous as pomegranate seeds." It is this idea that we are trying to implement into our projects, because the more good deeds we do, the better the world around us becomes.

I began to volunteer on July 10, 2017. Since then, I can not stop to do it. The project was called “For Art” then. Then, it was “Keshet.” On July 9, I came to help a presenter and remained here. I have a lot of activities in my life, but I am a civil engineer by occupation. I have a lot of hobbies, and as volunteer I am interested in painting with the “golden age” people. I don’t skip classes – I don’t usually give up if I have started something. Perhaps, I’m getting closer to my parents on subconscious level, because they live in Israel, and I’m getting closer to older people thanks to our clients, and I’m getting more involved in their problems, I’m becoming more tolerant. The most important thing is to understand the fact that the “golden” people had their own victories in painting. I understand this, because I was not able to hold the brush in my hands when I was a child, but then I took it in my hand and I was really fascinated by the process and results.

Julia Tsytkina is an economist in the municipal budget health care institution.

How did you get into the League of Volunteers? I went to Menorah for yoga and painting, and there I found out about the volunteer project. I delivered presents to old people and children, washed the windows at homes of elderly people, and helped to organize painting classes with the elderly.

Now I’m involved in Shabbat project at home of elderly people. We light candles on Fridays, read prayers and hold Shabbat together.

I am a journalist. Listening is an important part of my profession. Listening is also necessary in volunteering, and I started to be a volunteer by making calls to lonely elderly people, and congratulating them on their birthday. Despite the fact that the congratulation was informally and quickly said, I invented every wish individually for everyone. I felt on the other end of the line that wards were happy and smiled a lot during the phone call. And they had a desire to tell a little bit more about themselves.

Then there was created by chance “There is Time” project of the League of Volunteers by EJCC Menorah. This is the project, in which I was completely in. And it seems to me, that I brought it to the highest point. I had various interesting tasks: to come up with what dishes to cook from the Jewish cuisine, arrange everything, find interested residents, held a delicious master class. Is this altruism? Maybe it is. Sharing energy and knowledge is altruistic for sure!

The Jewish community is one of the favorite hobbies for me, which allows me to realize my and others’ potential. It also helps to preserve the culture and individuality of my people.

Volunteering in the Jewish community gives me the opportunity to help people, take part in interesting projects, see many organizational processes from the inside, learn new things, and get a lot of positive emotions and impressions.

I participate in many community projects. Every project has a volunteer component, which, in my opinion, raises the level of efficiency and self-awareness of its participants.

I would like to wish good luck and patience to the “League of Volunteers” project, because it is difficult but very necessary work.

The idea to become a volunteer came to me a long time ago. It happened before I got to know the cultural center “Menorah” and the “League of Volunteers”. It all started with a project to help veterans in Ekaterinburg.

Later, when I was already in Menorah, I became a volunteer in the “Keeping stories” project, collecting stories of war veterans. Due to this project I started to join other projects related to the gifts delivering, collecting things, helping older people and children with special needs. Sometimes, it is necessary to make 5-6 visits for couple of hours, but everyone is filled with positive impressions and emotions about what you are doing.

First of all, volunteering for me is communication with people whom I could never meet outside the project; the opportunity to “grasp” the story. It helps me to expand my vision. So in a way, I pay tribute to people, thanks to whom we live in a peaceful time, preserving the history of their lives. I really want the project “League of Volunteers” to continue to develop and increase the number of volunteers and initiatives for them.

2015 - 2019 / FSU Volunteer

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